DTTM 31

Chapter 31: Pavlov’s Aftereffects

“You… how did you get down from up there?”

The building I lived in had only three floors, and I happened to be assigned to the top floor.

Although it only had three floors, the total height was over ten meters due to the considerable height of each floor. It was a height from which it was difficult to fall unharmed.

How come I never noticed before that he had such athletic talent?

“The downstairs door is locked,” Zong Yanlei replied confidently.

We were so close that the chill from his black coat seeped through my pajamas and enveloped me completely.

I couldn’t help but shudder. He must have sensed it, because the next moment he put his arm around my waist and pulled me into the room.

“Have I been too lenient with you lately?” With his back against the balcony door, Zong Yanlei put one arm around my waist and the other hand on my head, his voice dangerously low. “You’ve been trending online all day, and you’ve been sleeping soundly here?”

The room was dark; the only light came from outside, shining through the glass of the balcony door, barely enough to make out objects. At least, that was the case for me.

“That trending topic was a smokescreen tactic by Western Fantasy. I’ve already explained it to Manager Xu…”

The hand around my lower back tightened suddenly, pressing down on the spot where I had bumped into the table earlier. The sudden pain made me cry out, and I reflexively tried to push Zong Yanlei away by putting my hands on his chest, but this only seemed to anger him further.

My wrists were pulled together and raised above my head, and he leaned over me until there was no space between us.

“Don’t you understand? Who’s in charge of the Sun God team?” He leaned close to my ear and whispered three words, soft yet powerful: “It is me.”

His breath brushed past my ears, and goosebumps instantly rose on my neck. I resisted the urge to turn my face away and quickly assessed the current situation.

Regardless of why he got so angry about a smokescreen that he jumped down the balcony in the middle of the night to question me, I absolutely couldn’t let the hard-won relationship be ruined here.

There was only one way left now, to coax him.

“Leander did extend an offer to me, saying he hoped I would consider a transfer next season, but I declined. I didn’t explain it to you directly because I went to the slums with the princess during the day and had no idea it was on the news. By the time I found out, you were busy, and I didn’t want to bother you…”

“Leander only mentioned letting you transfer?”

I was taken aback, unsure if what he said was the same as what I was thinking.

“He’s notorious for being indiscriminate about men and women, and he has some particular fetishes when it comes to the Wo people. Has he harassed you?” He turned his head and coldly scrutinized me. “Tell the truth.”

Lying would be a better and easier option, but when I looked into his captivating eyes, I found myself saying the truth: “He… said he was very skilled.”

Zong Yanlei narrowed his eyes and asked with a smile, “Are you tempted?”

“No.” I answered quickly this time.

He scoffed and released his grip on me: “Yeah, you don’t like men anyway. Remember, next time something like this happens, tell me immediately. I don’t want to see news about my partner online.”

I rubbed my lower back, grinned, and nodded, “I understand.”

The room fell silent. Zong Yanlei didn’t speak, and neither did I.

Just as I was wondering what else he wanted, he suddenly lowered his eyes and asked, “Does your back hurt?”

For a moment I couldn’t tell whether his comment was out of concern or to provoke me, so I could only cautiously reply, “It’s alright, it shouldn’t be serious.”

“Get down on the bed.”

My last word almost overlapped with his first. After saying that, he turned around and walked towards the bedroom door. He took off his coat and threw it on the seat at the foot of the bed.

“Snap!” The light switch by the door was turned on, and the room was instantly brightened. But perhaps because the place was old, even the lamps were worn out, and the light had an ambiguous yellowish hue, enveloping the entire room in an old-fashioned light and shadow.

Zong Yanlei left the bedroom and busied himself outside for a while. From the noise, it sounded like he had opened the refrigerator in the outdoor bar.

I lay on the bed, resting my chin on my hands, and as I waited, the dim light brought back my drowsiness. I yawned and tried to keep my drooping eyelids open.

“Young Master, I’m fine. It’s so late, you…”

I turned around and Zong Yanlei was already standing at the door.

He was walking toward the bed with the sleeves of his black sweater rolled up to his elbows, carrying a package wrapped in a towel.

“Lift up your clothes.” He completely ignored me and ordered again.

I sighed inwardly, knowing he wouldn’t listen to me, so I reached behind me and pulled up the hem of my pajamas.

There was a slight sinking sensation from the bed as Zong Yanlei sat down.

“It’s bruised.”

He saw the injured area and briefly described the current condition of the injury.

“Hmm, it should be subcutaneous bleeding. Ouch, it’s so cold…” I almost jumped up like a fish out of water halfway through my sentence. “Ouch, ouch, ouch, young master, be gentle!”

“Don’t move.” Zong Yanlei’s voice was somewhat impatient. He ruthlessly pressed my body back down, but the pressure of the ice pack on my waist was reduced slightly.

He pressed a damp towel wrapped in ice against my skin. I buried my face in the pillow, and tried my best not to pull away.

As a result, my will and my body’s reactions clashed, my muscles began to contract, and I started trembling. The more I tried to suppress this uncontrollable shaking, the more my muscles disobeyed me, making me shake even more noticeably.

The whole bed felt like it was shaking…

“Are you cold? You’re shivering so badly.” Zong Yanlei stopped what he was doing.

“Hmm, a little…”

The ice pack was removed.

I breathed a sigh of relief, and my muscles instantly relaxed.

“Your body’s reactions are always very interesting.” The next second, the cold touch came down again, it slowly slid up the hollow of my back.

I tightened my grip on the blanket beneath me.

Oh no, the young master was getting carried away.

I tried to struggle, but he easily subdued me by pressing down on my neck.

The ice in the towel melted with my body heat, and water droplets flowed out through the pores. It slid down the sides of my body, creating a light, ticklish sensation like being scratched by feathers.

“With a body like yours, have you really only ever been with women?”

My forehead pressed against the pillow, and my body began to tremble again, this time for a less than honorable reason.

During competitions, no matter what happened, I could remain calm and composed. Why was it that I just couldn’t resist the desire boiling inside me?

Could it be because he played too much “King’s Game” with me when we were kids?

Between the ages of 16 and 17, in order to pay for my grandmother’s medical treatment, I did fulfill many of his strange requests. Those observations and explorations of the body could perhaps be called our shared sexual awakening.

So what was this? Pavlovian conditioning?

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” After receiving no response for a long time, the hand that was pressing on my neck moved to the front, grabbed my chin and lifted it up, forcing me to tilt my head back.

I had to loosen my teeth and spit out the wet pillow from my mouth.

He’s a pervert, always tormenting people.

If I couldn’t see that he was using this as an excuse and hadn’t actually let go of Leander’s matter, then I had wasted nine years of my time with him.

“Young master, I won’t do it again next time…” I closed my eyes, still using my usual “coaxing” tactic, and begged for mercy in a trembling voice.